“You owned a 4.3-million-dollar house in Boston?” Dani asks.
“No, a condo near—” I blink. “Is that how much this place costs? Good for you.”
She sighs loudly and stares across the counter at Fox.
“Let’s just…” He waves a hand to try and calm her down. “Let’s give him the benefit of the doubt before we make any calls.”
“Calls?” I ask. “What calls?”
He scratches nervously at the scar on his cheek. “We’re a little concerned…”
“About what?”
“About the assassins who know where we sleep, Boxcar.”
“Don’t be. They only know where you sleep. I made sure that they wouldn’t know Dani lives here. And besides, those two are going to be very busy for a while. I have a bounty hunter tracking them down as we speak.”
“There’s also a bounty hunter who knows where I live,” Fox argues. “On all counts, we should probably move again.”
I close my laptop to give them my undivided attention. “No one is moving anywhere. Look—” I gesture behind me at the kitchen table where I’ve stacked boxes upon boxes of new tech I bought on my little shopping spree this morning. “I’ve got new, non-shitty cameras to install in every room of this glorious mansion and in every corner of that perfect green lawn of yours. Noise sensors, pressure sensitivity plates, booby-traps — the works.”
Fox smirks. “And on what sleazy politician’s dime?”
I pause. “I’m going to plead the fifth on that one, but it doesn’t matter. Just consider it a generous donation or… hush money, if you will.”
Dani’s little eyes grow wider with concern. “I’ll call the real estate agent,” she says to Fox.
“No one’s calling the real estate agent!” I chuckle. “Trust me, guys. When I’m done here, this place will be an impenetrable fortress.”
The front door opens and a voice echoes in from the front hall.
“Hello?”
Fox glares at me as it closes.
“I said, when I’m done,” I say.
Caleb steps into the kitchen from the hallway.
“It’s just Caleb,” I say, pointing. “She’s mostly harmless.”
She gestures over her shoulder. “Did you guys know your front gate is wide open?”
I flinch. “Okay, that was my bad. Sorry.”
“I’ll go close it,” Fox says, his voice dry as sand. “Then, I’ll get started patching up the bullet holes riddled throughout my living room.”
“Hey, I took a bullet in your house and I didn’t sue you,” I joke. “You should be thankful.”
“It was a graze.”
“Pfft, like anyone here has had worse,” I challenge.
Fox gestures at Dani with his hard eyes.
I swallow hard. “Oh, right. Sorry,” I say to her.
To her credit, Dani smiles. “It’s okay.”
As Fox passes Caleb, the two of them exchange a kiss on the cheek. “Hey, Cal.”
“Hey, Fox.” She cranes her neck and calls over her shoulder. “Did you bring me back something Japanese?”
“I might have.”
“Yay.”
“Hey, Caleb,” Dani greets.
“Hey, Dani.” Caleb pauses near me and I notice the brown envelope in her hand as she lays it on the counter near my laptop. “Mostly harmless?” she asks me.
“I stand by my phrasing,” I say.
Dani clears her little throat and twists away with a smile. “I’m going to go help him,” she says, her eyes jolting between us with a knowing glimmer.
“Bye, Dani,” I say. She takes off and I wait until her echoing feet disappear out the front door. “Okay, she is fucking adorable.”
“I know, right?” Caleb says.
“I didn’t even know the human race was capable of imbuing that much cuteness into one living being.”
“I think she’s already taken, Box.”
“Story of my life.” I shake my head. “Eh, that’s not really my type, anyway.”
“I’m not sure how to take that.”
“Let me know when you figure it out.” My eyes fall down her body. “You feeling okay?”
“Not too bad,” she says. “No side effects to speak of other than a massive headache but a few tequila shots on the way over here did wonders for that.”
“Good.”
Her eyes graze my shoulder. “And you?”
I point at it, acting cool. “What? This? It was nothing.”
She flicks my arm, shooting a sharp pain across my back.
I hold back my wince. “Okay, that was just mean.”
She chuckles. “Sorry.”
“It’s all right.” I look into her green eyes and the pain disappears. “How did you know I was here?”
“Where else would you be?”
“Decent point.”
She puts her fingers on the envelope and slides it a little closer to me to change the subject. “So, you kept these…”
“I did.”
“Why?”
“Hardcore masochism.”
Her lips twitch. “Box.”
“It…” I give half a shrug with my good shoulder. “It never really occurred to me to destroy them.”
She stares at me and I see her running the words through every bullshit detector she has. “Is that true?”
“It’s half-true,” I say. “I don’t know. I guess it was the only thing I had that reminded me of our marriage. As brief and tumultuous as it was. We didn’t exactly exchange rings.”
Caleb stares at me in silent pause and, for the first time, I can’t figure out which direction the wheels are turning in her head. “Boxcar…” She wets her lips, hesitating on her words. “I—”
“Wait—” I hold up a hand and rise off the stool. “Before you do that thing I know you’re about to do, I need to say something first.”
She goes quiet and I shift a little closer to her.
“I’ve spent the last two years running from you because I didn’t want to lose you — and yes, I know that makes absolutely no logical sense, but that’s the truth. That wasn’t fair to you and what you wanted and I’m sorry.” I push the envelope over to her. “No more games, Caleb Fawn. I love you. I always have. Ever since the moment I saw you and it didn’t have anything to do with the wild hallucinations brought on by extreme dehydration and heat exposure.” She chuckles softly and my heart swells. “You’re it for me… but I get it if that doesn’t go both ways and I’m prepared to let you go if that’s what you want.”
“Is that all?” she asks, red flooding her cheeks.
“Yeah.” I smile and shift a half step back. “Go ahead, then. Lay it on me.”
She pauses as her lips curl. “Well, before that sudden interruption, I was going to say…” She swipes the envelope off the counter, sliding it fast out from under my fingers. “I love you.”
Fire shoots down my spine.
The L-word.
Caleb Fawn just said the actual L-word and she said it to me.
“But…?” I ask.
She smiles wider. “I love you, Boxcar, and it has nothing to do with how badass you looked holding my revolver. Though, I’d be lying if I said it didn’t turn me on a little bit.”
I laugh. “Okay…” I take an unsteady breath. “So, what does that mean?”
“It means that you went really above and beyond for me. You could easily have ignored that call the Harts made and ditched me, but you didn’t. The man who does that deserves a heck of a lot more than a second chance, I think.”
“You might be right.”
“But…”
I deflate. “So close…”
“But the ball lies in your court, Box. It’s up to you to decide if a woman like me deserves a second or a third or even a fourth chance.”
There’s a lack of confidence in her voice as if I’m about to reject her outright and kick her to the proverbial curb. A laugh permanently bounces in the back of my throat.
To even think that I’m capable of rejecting her is downright ludicrous.
“Is that even a question?” I ask.
She shrugs. “I could rephrase it as one.”
“Don’t bother. I wouldn’t be here now if every high and low with you wasn’t worth it, Cal.”
“You’re quite the glutton for punishment.”
“Your bite always tickled a little,” I joke. “Well, you know where I stand. What say you, Caleb Fawn? Will you stay my wife?”
Her fingers grip the envelope a little tighter as she scans the floor. She bends down and grabs the garbage bag full of shitty cameras by my feet and tosses the papers inside.
“I think I will,” she says.
I grip the counter behind me to keep from falling over. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
I force a nonchalant shrug through my shoulders. “Cool.”
Caleb laughs and leans forward, filling my nose with that oh-so-familiar flowery scent of her. As her lips press softly against mine, she lays her palms on my chest and she smiles as my heart bashes wildly against my ribs.
I cup her adorable face and steal another firm kiss off her perfect, pink lips before I glance down at the garbage bag again. “But we should probably shred those…”
“I know.” She chuckles. “It was more of a symbolic gesture.”
“Gotcha.”
I pull her back in and her fingers crawl around my back as I crush my lips against hers. My senses ignite, breathing a heavy fire through my lungs with every soft caress of her mouth on mine.
Caleb Fawn. My beautiful wife.
For real this time.
“Ah, jeez.”
We pull away from each other as Fox shakes his head from the doorway. Dani lingers behind him with bright red cheeks.
“Sorry, Fox.” Caleb laughs, wiping her mouth.
He steps in and makes his way toward the refrigerator. “No, it’s okay.” He sighs. “It’s like being back in Afghanistan again. In fact…” He pulls it open and fishes out three bottles of beer from the door. “This is the first time since then that the three of us have been in the same room together and I think that deserves a moment.”
Fox pops the bottles open and slides two across the counter toward us, taking the third one for himself.
Caleb stops the refrigerator from closing and grabs a fourth bottle. “With honorable mention to Dani, of course.”
Dani shakes her head from the doorway. “I wasn’t even there.”
“With the amount Fox talked about you, yes you were.”
I laugh. “I’ll agree with that.”
Dani’s grin spreads across her face and Fox’s head falls. “Is that so?” She steps forward and takes the bottle from Caleb.
Fox sighs. “I admit nothing.”
Dani nudges his ribs and he slides one arm around her petite shoulders before planting a quick peck on her forehead.
My eyes shift between the three of them and my memories take me back to the place I never wanted to go again.
“I fucking hate sand,” I say.
Fox and Caleb give nods of agreement as the three of us bring our bottles together, clinking them once before we each take a drink.
“Does that mean you won’t be sticking around the golden coast?” he asks me.
I shrug. “Oh, I wouldn’t say that just yet. There’s still plenty of work to do out here.”
“Like what?”
I glare at Caleb. “For starters, I’m going to upgrade that atrocious security system you have in your shop.”
She scoffs. “If I even have a shop anymore…”
“I’m going to fix that problem with your bank, too.”
Her eyes narrow. “Boxcar…”
I shake my head. “Don’t argue with me, honey. My money is your money—”
“And your money isn’t even yours.”
“Eh, what’s a few numbers in a computer?” I shrug. “Besides, I still owe you for losing that arm-wrestling match.”
“But I cheated.”
“Oh!” I set my bottle down. “So, you actually admit it?”
“Guys.” Fox raises his voice, silencing the two of us with little effort. He grins and shakes his head. “Nevermind.”
I clap my hands together. “All right. I have a security system to rebuild.”
“Yes, please,” Fox says. “Fix my house.”
I curl my fingers around Caleb’s hand. “We just need to run upstairs and check something real quick…”
He squints. “Boxcar.”
“It’s just a quick check of the upstairs rooms,” I say, pulling her with me into the hall. “Location scouting for cameras and wires and all—”
“You don’t need Caleb for that.”
I gasp. “I’ll have you know, this woman is highly-skilled in many things. Her expertise will come in handy bringing this place back online.”
“Uh, yeah,” Caleb says, following my lead. “I got loads of knowledge.”
Fox heaves a defeated sigh and Dani giggles as Caleb and I rush up the tall stairwell.
I pause at the top, suddenly torn by the multiple choices of doors but Caleb shoves me toward the second on the left. She pushes it open, revealing an ample-sized guest room with a king-sized bed.
I nod. “This will do.”
I close the door and push Caleb against it, finding her lips again as she tugs my belt. She wastes no time taking what she wants. I feel her fingers grip tightly around me. A quiet groan teases my throat as my cock springs to life, growing harder with each stroke.
I drop my kisses to her neck. I feel her quiver against the door, easing closer to me as a moan starts on her tongue.
“Shh.” I chuckle. “We should probably be quiet—”
“Shut up and fuck me.”
I smile. “Yes, ma’am.”
I pull her off the door and guide her toward the bed. She falls onto it and she raises her arms as I pull her shirt over her head. I unzip her jeans with one hand, fishing my fingers into her panties while my tongue tastes her sweet lips.
Caleb sighs with pleasure as my fingers split her pink folds and I draw circles around her throbbing bud. Her hips twitch, rubbing against my hand a little harder, taking the joy she deserves. My wife writhes beneath me, inhaling quick, shallow breaths, gripping the bedspread under us with both hands.
I look upon her like the goddess she is.
“Don’t stop…”
My lips curl against her perfect mouth. “Like I ever could.”
I push a finger inside of her. She moans, twitching elegantly as more pleasure rocks her. Her muscles grasp me from the inside and I imagine what it’ll feel like when my cock is finally inside of her again.
I push off and stand over her, watching her mewl as I pull her jeans off her perfect legs. She sits up and tugs on my open pants, drawing me closer to her as she slides my briefs down to expose my hard cock. I lean over her, forcing her down onto her back, sliding in place between her thighs as I crush my lips against hers.
She grips my shaft. I groan above her as her tight fist positions me between her folds. Another moan steals her away while she rubs the hard tip on herself. I balance on my arms above her, admiring the pleasure washing over her face as she gets herself off. She bites her lip to hold back her moans. I chuckle at her torment, enjoying every splendid moment of her taking what she wants.
Her eyes sparkle with climax and she guides me inside just in time for me to feel her tightness surge along my shaft. I thrust deeper and she smiles, bucking her hips to meet me with a fast, steady rhythm.
She drags her nails up my body, forcing my shirt over my head. I wince, forgetting about my wounds.
“Sorry!” she cries.
I chuck the shirt across the room and shake my head, lowering my lips to hers again without a care in the world. Pain blends with pleasure. Desire overwhelms everything. My dick swells, throbbing wildly inside of her with each hard thrust.
Inside of Caleb Fawn, the stone-col
d warrior woman who never wanted anything to do with me, but I couldn’t get enough of her.
She throws her head back and moans. “Boxcar…”
I adjust the movement, thrusting upward because I know what it does to her. Like a damn magician, I give the most subtle flick of my wand and miracles dance in front of her eyes. She digs her nails into my back, driving my passions for her. I kiss her again, sucking her bottom lip between my teeth, and she breaks beneath me, coming so hard even I see stars.
I grip her body and fuck her a little harder until she brings me down. I come inside of her, embraced in her warmth and she covers my face and neck with soft kisses to keep me from falling apart.
I collapse onto the bed beside her and she rolls over to face me. I study her eyes, just waiting for that moment when panic rises up and overwhelms her.
Any second now, she’ll sit up. Her hands will twitch. Her forehead will crinkle and guilt will drive her to find her panties as fast as humanly possible.
“Caleb?” I whisper.
She blinks slowly. A smile trembles her lips. Her eyes never leave mine, seemingly content and satisfied.
Still, I wait for disappointment.
Any moment now…
Caleb shifts up and my heart sinks as the horrible prophecy takes shape in my mind. I close my eyes, preparing for the worst.
Then, I feel her head settle against my shoulder and her soft touch lands on my chest.
My god.
I’ve done the impossible.
I made Caleb Fawn fall in love with me.
Chapter 29
Archer
Bloody hell.
I step one foot inside the Zappia casino and my nose twitches from the stench of blood.
“Hold it.”
A large man blocks my path. His young eyes flick with nervous caution.
“The casino is closed,” he says. “Leave now.”
I hold up my hands. “I ain’t here to gamble, mate. I was called here.”
“You’re the hunter.” He nods, quickly realizing who I am. “Mr. Zappia said he was expecting you.”
I say nothing.
He clears his throat and extends an open palm to me. “If you’re carrying, you need to give it up now. No weapons in the casino.”
“Since when?”
Broken Love Page 17
